Taking revenge on wicked Lord Byron

This is the second article in an occasional series by Christopher Fletcher, Keeper of Special Collections at the Bodleian Library. You can read the first instalment here.

By 1814, two years after he awoke to find himself famous, everyone wanted a piece of Byron. Some got jewellery, several got hair and a fair few got a reputation. Among the most prized of trophies, however, was a sample of verse – not printed, mind, but written out with the warm intimacy of the poet’s hand.

In a letter of 23 December 1814, the novelist and society gossip Miss Emily Eden described to Lady Buckinghamshire the febrile hunts she had witnessed at Middleton House, seat of the Jerseys and occasional retreat for Byron. When visiting in 1812 the poet sharpened his nib (steel was only just catching on, watch this space) and wrote out copies of his verse in Lady Jersey’s commonplace books, changing words here and there to suit the occasion and flatter the recipient.